ABSTRACT
The Foreign Office counsellor, Friedrich von Holstein, who continued to work closely with Bismarck in the late 1880s while becoming increasingly critical of his foreign policy, presents a devastating picture of Bismarck's decline in his diary. Bismarck, he wrote in 1885, had an 'increasing sense of power', continuing to use people 'like knives and forks which are changed after each course'. But he now allowed his moods to influence public affairs more than he used to and made contradictory decisions, especially in his marginalia on reports, without consulting the files and without sufficient reflection. Bismarck's longevity in office had not made him any happier or more satisfied, and he complained that power had consumed all his other interests. He continued to regret the loss of former personal friends, feeling especially embittered about the ultra-conservatives he had formerly associated with, and he never believed he received the recognition or gratitude that he deserved.
